2.14.2011

Lockdown

About 11 o'clock Friday night I let Russell out in the backyard to play fetch for a few minutes and then put him in his "box" to go to bed. While we're out there I hear police sirens but don't think anything of it, I'm about 2 blocks from a major highway so it's nothing out of the ordinary.

We succeed in running back and forth the legnth of my yard multiple times chasing his favorite Kong tennis ball, and then decided to call it a night. I bring him inside, get him a treat and he goes into his box for bedtime as I follow suit up the stairs into my own room.

As I get the lights turned off and roll over I notice flashing lights through the sides of my blinds. That's odd, I think to myself, my sleepy ol' neighborhood never see's much action! I mosey over to the window and watch as another cop car drives by my house to meet the first stationed at a stop sign no more than 50 yards from my front door.

I'm not gonna lie... my interest is peaked now! I hop down the stairs to get a better view from my living room window, but as I turn the corner I noticed flashing lights coming from the opposite end of my street too. And more on a street corner behind my house. That excitement starts to turn into worry and confusion. Why were there cops on every corner within a few blocks of my house?

By this time I had opened my front door to see what was going on and decided to go out and grab my paper since I saw it sitting there (and so I could get a better view!)

I hadn't even made it down my front steps before two cops in a truck pulled up."Is everything alright ma'am?""Yea, I just saw all the lights, is everything ok?""You need to get back in your house and lock all your doors ma'am""Uhh... can I ask why????""We've had a felon escape from us and he's in the area. Now please go inside and lock your doors"

To say I ran back into the house and triple-checked all the doors (and windows) would be an understatement. The cops left 20 minutes or so after that. Not sure how it all wrapped up, I still haven't heard anything about it?

Needless to say, I slept with Mace and an old shower curtain rod next to my bed that night.

My town has one of the lowest crime rates in the area, it's not like this happens frequently! There's not even a jail nearby, so I'm wondering if those sirens I heard were because the felon hopped out of the cop car or something?!?

And the fact that I was in my backyard with NO clue just a few minutes before all the cops showed up.... that's just plain scary! I keep thinking that there could have been a rapist or murderer just a few steps away.